Across the Central American isthmus, three Mexican former referees are taking on influential new roles away from the touchline. Felipe Ramos Rizo in Guatemala, Armando Archundia in Nicaragua and Miguel Chacón in Costa Rica now oversee key parts of their host federations’ refereeing structures, bringing experience from Mexico, FIFA and Concacaf into a region seeking stronger training, appointments and modern officiating tools.
Their assignments stretch beyond the familiar work of judging matches. Each has been entrusted with developing local officials, supervising standards and shaping the systems that support referees from domestic competitions upward. It is a notable cross-border movement for Mexican officiating, with three different countries placing former Mexican officials at the centre of their respective programmes.
Guatemala looks towards video support
Ramos Rizo, a Mexican World Cup referee, has taken charge of Guatemala’s refereeing department after roughly two decades working as an analyst for an international broadcaster. Gerardo Paiz, president of the Guatemalan Football Federation, approached him to lead the department.
His remit includes the education and appointment of Guatemalan referees, while a major ambition is the introduction of Football Video Support. The FVS system is designed to give match officials video assistance on important decisions, offering a route towards technological support in a setting where full VAR infrastructure is not always available.
Further south, Archundia has assumed leadership of refereeing in Nicaragua. The two-time World Cup official previously headed Mexico’s referees commission from 2022 until 2024 and arrives with one of the country’s most extensive on-field records. His refereeing career began in 1985, and he went on to officiate 591 Mexican top-flight matches, the highest total in the nation’s football history.
Nicaragua’s task for Archundia is centred on professional development: strengthening technical preparation and helping create a more robust pathway for its referees.
Costa Rica gains a specialist in VAR development
In Costa Rica, Chacón has been selected as president of the refereeing commission. His background is particularly tied to the game’s technological changes: he was among those involved in establishing VAR in Mexican football and continues to work as an instructor for both FIFA and Concacaf.
Chacón has spent eight years as a FIFA instructor for the Americas. His training work has already taken him to Nicaragua, El Salvador and Honduras, and he is due to work in Panama on Football Video Support.
From Guatemala City to Managua and San José, the three appointments form a shared regional thread. Ramos Rizo, Archundia and Chacón arrive with distinct records, but their mandates point in the same direction: better-prepared officials, clearer oversight and a gradual expansion of the tools now reshaping refereeing across the continent.
